Switch-operating mechanism.



No. 878,927 PATENTED FEB. 11, 1908.

A. B. ALLEN.

SWITCH OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLIOATION FILED in 21.1907. g

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I A. B. ALLEN. SWITCH OPERATING MECHANISM.

I APPLIUATION FILED JUNE 21,1907- 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2-.

INVENTOR W1 TNESSES U Wang w 6; At/omeyJ PATENTED FEB. 11, 1908."

A. B. ALDEN. SWITCH OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLIGATION FILED Jul 21 1901 3 SHBBTS-SHEET 3.

AARON BURR ALLEN, OF PUEBLO, COLORADO.

SWITCH-OPERATING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters I'atent.

Patented Feb. 11, 1908.

Application filed. June 21. 1907. Serial No. 380,123

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AARON Bonn ALLEN, citizen of the United States, residing at Pueblo, in the county of Pueblo and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Switch-Operating Mechanism; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements in switch operating mechanism, and is designed more particularly as an improvement over that form of switch mechan- 1SII1 applied for by me under date of Se tember 26, 1906, Serial No. 336311, and al owed December 16, 1906, and my object is to provide in connection with switch shifting mechanism, a locking device for normally holding the switch in its set position.

A further object is to provide means for automatically shifting the switch operating mechanism.

Other objects and advantages will be here inafter referred to and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accom anying drawings, which are made a part of t is application, Figure 1 is a central sectional view through the switch opcrating mechanism, and the body of the car.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the switch operating mechanism, and a portion of the switch and maintrack rails. Fig. 3 is a sectional View as seen on line 3-3, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 isa bottom plan view of the switch operating mechanism. 5 is a bottom lan view of a draw-bar, and a part of the switch control ling mechanism carried thereby. Fig. 6 is a erspective view of the brackets employed or carrying the switch controlling mechanism. Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view of the mechanism for. actuating the switch op erating mechanism, and, Fig. 8 is an elevation artly in section of a car body, and a slight y modified form of device for carrying the switch controlling mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in which similar reference numerals designate corresponding arts throughout the several views, 1 and 2 indicate the main track rails, with which are adapted to coperate switch rails 3 and 4, the end of the switch rail 4 being pivotedin position and adapted to move towards or away from the main track rail 2, and in order to readily accomplish this result, I locate between the track rails 1 and 2, and adj acent the intersection of the switch rails with the track rails, a switch operating mechanism, which consists of a housing 5, which is oblong in general outline, and is provided with a cover 6, which is secured in any preferred manner over the u per edge of the housing.

Pivotal y mounted on the upper surface of the cover 6, is a switch 0 eratmg lever 7, one end of which is provide with a head 8, the edge walls of which are curved outwardly, so as to form a substantially triangular head, while the operating lever from its pivot point to the opposite end thereof is tapered to form a finger 9, and when the operating lever is properly located upon the cover 6, the head 8 thereof is adjacent one end of the cover. 7

Each longitudinal edge of the cover 6 is provided with upwardly extending flanges 10, the inner faces of which are curved and provided with notches 11, in which the extreme tapered end of the finger 9 is adapted to rest, said notches being of sufficient depth to bring the outer face of the finger in alinement with the curved face of the flanges, so

that an object traveling along the curved edge of the flange, will readily ass into engagement with the alining face of the finger 9.

The pivot pin 12 for the operating lever 7 extends through the lever and cover 6, and has pivotally mounted on its" lower end a locking bar 13, while the opposite end of said locking bar is secured to a bolt 14;, carried by the head 8, and extended into the housing 5,

through aslot 15, in the cover 6, and it will be seen that when the operating lever is swung upon its pivot point, the end of the bar engaged with the bolt 14 will swing from side to side of the housing, the object of said locking bar being to normally hold the operating lever 7 in its shifted position, and to accomplish this result, I rotatably mount on the lower surface of the locking bar 13, and

adjacent its longitudinal center, a roller 100 bearing 16, with which is adapted to engage a substantially V-shaped projection 17, carried by a latch 18, one end of said latch being pivotally mounted on the under surface of the cover 6, while the opposite end thereof 105 is secured to a spring 19 carried by the cover 6, and it will be seenthat when the operating lever is swung upon its pivot-pin, the roller bearing 16 will be moved from side to side of the V-shaped projection 17, the spring 19 110 yielding sufliciently to allow the roller to pass the projection, but is of sufficient strength to revent the casual swinging of the operating ever. Also secured to the bolt 14 and below the locking bar 13, is a pitman 20, which extends laterally through an opening in one side of the housing 5, and is secured to one end of a crank shaft 21, said crank shaft being secured in any preferred manner along the rail 2. The opposite end of the crank shaft is provided with a cranked portion, which extends in an opposite direction from the cranked portion to which the pitman 20 is secured, and has secured thereto an auxiliary pitman 22, the opposite end of which is ivotally secured to the movable portion 0 the switch rail 4, and it will thus be seen that when the lever 7 is swung upon the pivot pin 12, the crank shaft 21 will be rocked, thereby opening or closing the switch, and in order to allow the pitman 20 to successfully operate, I form the same in two sections, and hingedly secure them together, as shownat 23 in Figs. 2 and 4.

It is my object to provide means for oper ating the controlling lever 7 from the plat form of the car, and to this end I have secured to the car body 18 the usual form of draw-bar 19, said draw-bar being yieldingly secured to the car-body, and is held in a sub stantially horizontal position by means of a spring 20, said spring also serving to hold the draw-bar substantially in the center of the car. Fixedly secured to the lower side of the draw-bar 19 are brackets 21 and 22, said brackets having registering openings therein, through which is disposed a stem 23,

to the lower end of which is secured an arm 24, which is extended at right angles to the stem 23, and is bifucated at its outer end.

Pivotally mounted between the bifurcated end of the arm 24 is a standard 25, upon the lower end of which is rotatably mounted a roller 26, while the upper end of the standard is provided with an eye 27 to receive one end of a guide rod 28, the opposite end of said guide rod being secured to the truck 29 of the car. The central portion of the guide rod 28 is so constructed as to form a spring 30, so that the arm 24 may swing from side to side when desired, said spring also serving to retain the arm in its normal alinement with the longitudinal center of the car.

The roller 26 is employed to operate the controlling lever 7 to throw the switch and in operation, the outer end of the draw-bar 19 carrying the brackets 21 and 22 is lowered by depressing a bolt 31 extending through the floor of the car-body and engaging the upper surface of the draw-bar, thereby lowering the roller 26 into the path of the lever 7, so that when said roller engages one face of the head 8, the lever 7 will be swung upon its pivot point, which will result in operating the pitman 20 and opening or closing the switch, the curved faces of the flanges 1O positively guiding the roller 26 into engagement with the head 8.

The standard 25 is limited in its movement in one direction, but may freely turn in the opposite direction, so that should the roller 26 encounter a solid substance, the standard-25 will rotate upon its pivot point and pass over the obstruction, the spring 27 immediately returning the standard to a vertical position as soon as the roller is released, and it will be clearly understood that said spring is of sufficient tension to prevent the standard from moving when the roller engages the head 8.

The pointed end of the lever 7 normally rests at one side of the longitudinal center of the cover 6, and thereby disposes one face of the head 8 in closer relation to one of the flanges 10 than with the other, and as the roller 25 is held substantially in the center of the car, it will readily be seen that the roller will pass into engagement with that face of the head nearest one of the flanges, which will result in throwing the switch as soon as the roller engages the tapered face of the head. This operation will result in throwing the tapered end of the lever 7 to the opposite side of the longitudinal center of the cover 6, so that when the roller is again brought into engagement with the lever, the switch will be operated in the opposite direction. By providing the spring 20, the roller 26 is sup- .ported entirely out of engagement with the switch operating mechanism, so that if it is desired to pass the switch without opening the same, the draw-bar is left in its horizontal position so that the roller will pass over and free of the operatinglever 7.

In Fig. 8 I have shown a slightly modified form of support for the brackets and parts carried thereby, and in this instance, I have dispensed with the draw-bar and substituted therefor a bracket 33, the forward end of which is curved downwardly and has fixed thereto brackets 34 and 35, in which is rotatably mounted the stem 23 while the inner end 36 of the bracket 33 is bifurcated to receive a clevis 37, which is in turn secured to the flooring of the body 18, and by this construction it will be seen that the forward end of the bracket can be readily depressed when desired, the clevis forming a pivot point for the bracket.

What I claim is 1. In a device of the class described, the combination with track rails and switch rails cooperating therewith; of an operating lever, pivotally mounted between the track rails, a head at one end of said lever, a bolt extending through said head, a pitman secured to said bolt, and extending laterally from the operating lever, a crank shaft secured to the outer end of said pitman, an auxiliary pitman at the opposite end of said crank shaft, and means to secure the auxbar and normally hold the operating lever in iliary pitman to one end of the switch rails, whereby when the operating lever is swung upon its pivot point, the switch will be opened or closed.

2. In adevice of the class described, the combination with track rails and switch rails cooperating therewith, one of said switch rails'having a movable end; of an operating leverpivotally mounted between the'track rails, a pivot pin for said operating lever, a bolt extending through one end of said lever, a locking bar carried by said ivot pin and bolt, a roller bearing on said ocking bar, a

ivotally mounted latch below said locking ar, a projection on said latch, yielding means to hold said projection in the path of said bearing, whereby when the operating lever is swung upon its pivot pin, the latch will yield to allow the roller bearing to pass said projection, and means to operatively secure the operating lever to the movable end of the switch rail.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination with track rails and switch rails cooperating therewith, one of said switch rails having a movable end; of a housing between said track rails, a cover for said housing, an operating lever on .said cover, a pivot pin extending through said operating lever and cover, a head at one end of said operating lever, the edge surfaces of which are curved, a bolt extending through said head, and through a slot in said cover, a pitman on the lower end of said bolt, said pitman having a hinge portion, a crank shaft secured to the outer end of said pitman, an auxiliary pitman at the opposite end of said crank shaft, means to pivotally secure said pitman to the movable portion of the switch rail, wherebywhen the operating lever is swung upon its pivot pin, the crank shaft will be operated to open or close the switch, and means in the housing to normally hold the operating lever in its adjusted position.

4. In a device of the class described, the combination with the movable portion of a switch rail; of a housing,a cover for said housing, flanges on said housing, the inner edges of which are curved, notches on the curved surfaces of said flanges, an operating lever pivotally secured to said cover and between the flanges a pivot pin extending through said lever, and cover, a tapered finger at one end of said lever, the extreme end of which is adapted to enter said notches,

a head at the opposite end of said lever, the.

engaging edges of which are curved, a bolt extending through said head and. through a slot in the cover, a itman carried'by the lower end of said b0 t, said pitman having a hinge portion, means to secure said pitman to the movable portion of the switch rail, a

locking bar carried by said pivot pinand bolt,

and means to yieldingly engage said locking its adjusted position. v

5. In a device of the class described, the combination with a movable portion of a switch rail; of a housing, a cover for said said pivot pin and bolt, a roller bearing depending from said locking bar, a latch pivotally secured at one end to the lower surface .of the cover, a projection on said latch adapted to normally rest in the path of said roller bearing, a spring secured at one end to the cover and at its opposite end to the free end of the latch, whereby said latch and projection will be held into engagement with said roller bearing under tension and the operating lever held in its adjusted position, and means extending between said bolt and movable portion of the switch rail to open and close the switch when the operating lever is swung upon its pivot pin.

6. In a device of the class described, the combination with switch rails and means to automatically open or close said switch rails; of means to operate said opening or closing mechanism comprising brackets, means to yieldingly secure said brackets to a car body, a stem pivotally mounted in said brackets, an arm at right angles to said stem having its free end bifurcated, a standard pivotallymounted in the bifurcated end of said arm, a roller on the lower end of said standard, and means to yieldingly hold said standard in a vertical position and the arm parallel with the longitudinal center of the car body.

7. In a device of the class described, the combination with switch operating mechanism and an operating lever on said mechanism; of means to engage said operating lever to operate the switch mechanism, comprising brackets, supporting means for said brackets, a spring to normally hold said sup porting means in a horizontal position, a stem rotatably mounted in said brackets, an arm at right angles to said stem, having a bifurcated end, a roller rotatably mounted on the lower end of said standard, and a guide rod having a spring at its central portion adapted to yieldingly hold said standard in a vertical position and the arm at the longitudinal center of the switch operating mech anism.

In testimony whereof I have signed my AARON BURR ALLEN.

WVitnesses:

ISSAO BUTZ, JOHN W. HEDDEN. 

